First "pop-up park" coming to Minneapolis

Blog Post by: $author

June 16, 2014 - 4:04 PM

For 48 days, a temporary "park" will appear somewhere in Minneapolis with food, games and music for kids. It's a city effort meant to prevent youth violence, and comes from the city's "Blueprint for Action to Prevent Youth Violence," according to a city press release issued Monday.

The first pop-up park had been scheduled for an official kick-off at 6 p.m. today at Penn Avenue North and Golden Valley Road, a spot known to police for frequent reports of crime, but it was postponed due to the weather. The remaining pop-up parks will take place at spots across the city for the next eight weeks from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., every day but Sunday. A majority of the parks will be held in north Minneapolis.

Mayor Betsy Hodges said in a statement that the parks will give kids a safe place to meet others while discouraging "anti-social and criminal behavior in the community."

Photo: Cedric Brown leapt into the pool at Farview Park on Aug. 29, 2013, a day when Minneapolis schools closed due to excessive heat.